Tuesday Round-Up

• File this one under: A Glimpse of the Future of Publishing, Take 6 (a category that, by the way, I find infinitely more interesting than the "death of publishing" articles that still periodically surface like glum sea cows. Yes, we all KNOW the old party is over. Lament quietly. In the corner, preferably. You're disturbing the people who are figuring out Publishing 2.0)

Six years after its founding, Morgan James Publishing is making its first appearance on PW's fast-growing small press list. The “entrepreneurial publisher” operates under a model that's becoming increasingly common: no advances and high royalties. Yet Morgan James makes an extraordinary effort to help its authors to grow their own business—whether an author is a self-help guru or a financial advisor—through promoting their books (the house specializes in business, self-help, inspirational and health books).

Founder David Hancock, a former mortgage banker, says the company helps its authors sell books by hosting educational events. “Our book sales are up 52% over last year, and that's because we try to teach authors how to market their books. It's had a significant impact on book sales.” Advertising and marketing are generally the authors' responsibility; Morgan James markets to bookstores and an e-mail list it has. But ultimately, publicity and promotion is up to the authors, “and we teach them how to do it,” Hancock says. Plus, if authors use a public relations firm that Morgan James approves of, the publisher will pay a percentage of the cost.

• Toward that end of self-promotion, here's an interview I did with Erin McGraw on Hobart Pulp (nifty segue, eh?).
  
• What do you do when faced with dozens of inaccuracies and errors in your "memoir?": "I respectfully disagree." (I've already read this book. Back when it was called Ball Four by Jim Bouton. Look into it.)
• March selections are up at Andrew's Book Club.